


The Braady Bunch

by RoninReverie



Series: Old Kanera Fanfiction [12]
Category: Star Wars: Rebels
Genre: Bakura - Freeform, F/M, Kurtzen, Millennium Falcon - Freeform, truant officer
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-15
Updated: 2016-05-15
Packaged: 2019-04-26 05:46:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,424
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14395581
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RoninReverie/pseuds/RoninReverie
Summary: The Chase Arc: 4/4After smuggling herself aboard the Millennium Falcon, Sabine joins Doctor, Parlay Thorp, on a mission to deliver medicine to the Kurtzen people living on the remote planet of Bakura. However, as old enemies catch up with her, Bakura might not be as remote as she would hope.Meanwhile the Ghost crew finally gets an answer out of Sabine in regards to their offer to join their band of misfit rebels.





	The Braady Bunch

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted on Tumblr: [Link!](http://roninreverie.tumblr.com/post/144392381534/the-braady-bunch)
> 
>  **IMPORTANT!** This series was written before the second half of season 2 aired on television, so all content is based on my headcanons after season 1 and the "A New Dawn" novel.

“No more!” Hera shouted. “I’m calling it! Let’s pack it in boys, we’re done.”

“Hera…” Kanan tried his best to tiptoe into his next statement. “It’s only been a couple of days.”

“I mean it Kanan!” She tried her best not to shout, but a few words still made it out angry… “No more. She’s not giving us a chance to explain ourselves and I have had it  _up to here_  with her wrecking my ship!”

Chopper buzzed in agreement as he and Zeb entered the cockpit and took a seat behind the two.

“So how’s the ship doing after all that?” he asked.

Zeb was referring to their latest daring mission to recruit the Mandalorian explosives expert to their crew.  Let’s just say that their last raid of the Mandalore Sector proved to be  _less than_  fulfilling.

This girl had managed to disrupt an entire field of test Tie-Fighters, blowing up a good portion of their station and their ships before fleeing the area and leaving Zeb and Kanan as the scapegoat for her little exploding spree.

Needless to say, that by the time the  _Ghost_ picked them up, Kanan and Zeb were already being shot at. The crew ended up being chased off of Corphelion under heavy fire, and got blasted nearly half way to Alderaan before they were able to break free from the angry Ties and their vengeful blasters.

“We’ll live…” was Hera’s reply. She placed her hands on her hips, debating how much work she and Chopper had cut out for them before the  _Ghost_ was back to normal. She sighed and looked to his bandaged limb and gave him a sincere glance as she asked, “How’s the arm?”

He looked to it and gave her a shrug.

“It’ll heal,” he said, “It’s just a scratch.”

During the fight back to the  _Ghost_ , Zeb got a pretty nasty shot laced into his arm by one of the Storm Troopers. Luckily, the crew still had a small bit of bacta gel left over in the med-kit.

Even with it, the scrape still hurt. Zeb was already wracking his brain for every old prank he knew because it was the one way he was going to return the favor. He was starting to get pretty excited to find her.  _Their rivalry could be legendary._

“Did she even pick up anything this time?” Kanan asked.

“None of the Ties were missing, and the Empire doesn’t typically keep spare parts lying around their landing platforms.” Hera rolled her eyes. “I think it was just a diversion to get us off her trail.”

“Again,” Zeb grumbled. “Kid must have known Chop and I were tailing her the whole time.”

“Well we’re persistent,” Kanan shrugged. “We’ll find her and try again, right?”

Hera and Zeb spoke to each other through eye contact before agreeing to direct all of their opposition towards Kanan. Their looks of skepticism were nearly identical, and Chopper voiced his disapproval as well.

“Come on guys…” Kanan eased again. “We can’t just leave her. She needs for someone to show her the way—to give her the chance at a better life.”

“Let me be the voice of reason here,” Hera snapped back. “We’re low on credits and we’re low on fuel. We need a real job to make some money and we need it soon.” She sighed. “Look, I wish it were different. I don’t want to give up on her, but I’m not about to kidnap someone who  _doesn’t want_  to be here.”

“What do you think about all this, Zeb?” Kanan asked.

He hummed for a long while before giving his answer, itching his ear as he glanced up at Kanan with a guilty face.

“I’m gonna have to go with Hera on this one,” he said. “Look I want payback— _I mean…_  I want to save the kid too, but if it’s not in the cards,  _then it’s not in the cards?_ ”

The lone outcast of the  _Ghost_  groaned, feeling completely singled-out with Zeb and Hera’s new-found alliance.  _This new method of decision making was going to involve a lot of him being outvoted in the years to come,_  Kanan was sure of that.

“Just one more chance…”

Hera gave him a glare, albeit a much softer look than she offered him before.

_It was a small opening, but Kanan would take what he could get._

Kanan thought for something that could sway her decision, but he knew that Hera didn’t want to give up on this kid, _not completely._ Once the ship was repaired, her anger would disappear shortly after. So if he worded his next statement carefully, then she  _might just_  let this last assault slide, and give the Mandalorian girl one final shot.

“Just one more…” He pleaded with his hands, a smile working onto his face as he added his bargaining chip to his groveling… “I will personally take the lead on cleaning the graffiti off the  _Ghost…”_

“And the dents?” Hera lifted a brow.

“Consider them buffed,” he nodded. “I think we need to give her just one more chance. She’s not a bad kid. She’s just— _a little stubborn._ ”

Zeb scoffed and held back a laugh, while Chopper argued against everything that Kanan was saying. He hoped that Hera was tuning the little orange rust bucket out because Chopper knew how her head worked almost better than Kanan did himself, and Chopper had a few good points on his side.

Either way, it was Hera’s deciding vote.

She shut her eyes and rocked her head softly from side to side as a small huff of air escaped her mouth.

“I cannot believe I’m doing this… Fine!” She pointed her finger into his face before he got a chance to grin about his victory. The glare she bore was fierce. “But I mean it Kanan, this is  _her_ last chance and  _our_  last shot. If she runs again then we’re just going to have to let her go and hope that she outruns everyone else as well as she does us. Is that clear?”

He swallowed and lowered her finger. “As crystal captain.” Kanan offered her a half-hearted salute and took his seat again with a satisfied sigh of victory.

“Here we go again,” Zeb rolled his eyes. “Do we still know where she heading?”

Hera walked over to the front and clicked a button on the dashboard.

“Surveillance caught her slipping onto a Corellian YT-1300 light freighter, currently piloted solely by one owner, a Doctor Parlay Thorp.” Hera pulled up the visuals on the Ghost computers so everyone could see the unique vessel and its pilot’s profile. “After doing some research, it seems that the doctor is heading to Bakura on a relief aid in an attempts to cure the natives.”

Chopper exclaimed a series of angry expletives, as Kanan tried to sink into his chair.

“Bakura?” Zeb blurted. “But, that’s all the way on the other side of the galaxy!?”

“I’m aware…” Hera glared, particularly to Kanan, as she sighed, “Promise me that this is the last time, and that if things go south, you aren’t going to keep chasing after her.”

“What?” he laughed.

“Kanan Jarrus, I know you!” She growled. “I’m not taking off without your word. Now promise me!”

He placed his fingers between his eyes and after a moment he nodded.

“Fine… I promise, I promise okay? You satisfied.”

“No,” she turned and took started prepping the ship. “But, I’ll take what I can get.”

“I sure hope this kid is worth it,” Zeb murmured.

“She will be, I know it!” He smiled. “I have a good feeling about this trip.”

Hera showed him a sweet smile, and took her position at the front of the ship.

“Well in that case, let’s get going.” She flipped the switch and the  _Ghost_ took off into hypserspace.

The crew was tired, sore, and at the end of their rope, but they remained optimistic. This girl was good— _really good._  They could use someone with her skills, and perhaps that was why they pursued her like they did. Kanan wanted to atone for his past by helping a new face, Hera wanted to save an innocent child from a life on the run, and Zeb decided that the payback he would inflict on this girl was reward enough in his book. Even Chopper thought her presence would become a valuable asset, so the crew was all in agreement. They could only hope that this time things would turn out differently.

* * *

 

_Finally a moment to catch a breath!  
_

Sabine rose from the small hole she’d snuck into before the ship had taken off from Corphelion. She thought that she had managed to plant at least six really good blasts on that Tie lot, and she snuck out by about blast three which ensured her a clean break. Then the man and Lasat who were tailing her the entire evening could stay back and take the heat. The Imperials probably chased them off of her trail.

She jumped on the first ship she saw, an ancient Corellian transport, but it would get the Imperials off her back. As for the meddlesome duo and their droid, she wasn’t so sure, but she remained hopeful.

This ship was the closest within her range that could help her disappear. Sabine wasn’t sure why she hadn’t thought about stowing away before—it was free, and it took her off world and with any luck, away from the Mandalore Sector.

She stopped and ducked behind the open doorway as a woman’s voice echoed on the other side of the wall from the cockpit area.

“Yes, this is Doctor Parlay Thorp,” she said, “I have received your distress beacon and am currently on route to your location. I should be there before your planet’s next rotation.”

 _A doctor’s transport. Well, that explained the lack of crew and guards._ Sabine thought.

“Our deepest gratitude, Doctor,” the static-voice replied. “We will prepare the subjects for testing upon your arrival.”

 _“Test subjects?”_  Sabine whispered to herself.  _What kind of doctor was this?_

“I’ll see you then, Thorp out.”

_*BEEP*_

_Where were they going?_  Sabine questioned further. She debated whether she should steal the ship or remain hidden and see where it took her. She didn’t have anywhere she really had to be so long as it was far, far away from Mandalore. If it took an entire rotation’s time to get to where they were going, then it must be far enough away from the Mandalore Sector for Sabine to make a fresh start. The last thing Sabine needed was the truant officer finding her.

She’d been lucky so far. She and Ketsu had managed to give him the slip for the time being, but with Ketsu gone and Sabine on the run, she could only make guesses at how close the officer was to catching up to her. 

If that ever happened Sabine didn’t dare think of what would happen to her. There are some punishments so cruel, even the Empire wouldn’t compare. If the man and Lasat could track her that easily, was it possible that after all this time, the truant officer could do so too?

“You can come out now!” the doctor called.

Sabine’s whole body tensed.

“Of course, I know you’re back there. The ship calculated the extra weight before we took off…” Thorp added, sounding glib as her voice revealed traces of Received Pronunciation.

Sabine scowled, her voice harsh and blaster drawn as she walked up to the co-pilot’s seat and aimed her firearm down at the doctor who didn’t so much as flinch, but raised her hands as if to patronize her.

“What’re you going to do about it?” she snarled.

Doctor Thorp was a small woman with pale-grey skin and silver-blonde hair tied back into a bun. There were slight wrinkles beside her eyes, yet she still looked young. Sabine wasn’t completely sure how old this woman was, but her guess was anywhere from a stressed thirty to a pampered sixty.

“What brings you aboard my ship young one? I’m not used to having stowaways…much less ones so young and lively such as yourself. Normally it’s just the cadavers or the test animals.”

“I’ll do the talking, alright lady?” she sneered. “You’re going to take me as far away from Mandalore as this scrap heap can go, you got that?”

“Are you running from something?” Thorp smiled, “Or perhaps  _someone_?”

“You could say that,” Sabine snipped back. “Now are we going to have a problem here or are you going to do as I say?”

The woman waved the air away and motioned towards the co-pilot’s chair.

“Oh put that thing away and sit down. This ship can handle the both of us just fine. The only problem we’ll have is if you hinder my mission young lady.”

Sabine sat and removed her helmet, blowing the loose strands of hair away from her face.

“What mission?”

She grinned… “Well, you picked the right ship my dear. I am currently on my way to the planet Bakura.”

“Bakura?” She repeated. “I’ve studied star maps, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard of a place called Bakura?”

“Oh, it’s a peaceful little planet over on the other side of the galaxy. The closest hub planet is Endor, very remote—not many people go that far down the Outer Rim unless you’re a poacher or a trader. Being on the edge of Wild Space makes it key for laying low,” she nudged her stowaway and smirked. “Right up your alley, I’d say.”

Sabine swallowed… “So why are you going all the way over there?”

“I’m on a stint mission. You see, I am a doctor from Obroa-Skai. After finishing my last job over on Hijado, I got a call that the natives of Bakura, a peaceful species known as the Kurtzen, are dying.”

“They’re dying?”

“As a renowned expert on aging and rejuvenation, I may be able to find a cure to the Kurtzen genetic disorder which threatens their entire population. If I succeed, the birth and mortality rates of the Kurtzen could potentially trade places… and they could live past 60 cycles.”

“Wow…” Sabine marveled. “That’s a pretty important mission. I didn’t know they sent doctors to off-world missions that big on a planet that means so little for resources.”

“You’d be surprised to learn that after traveling on so many relief efforts, people will need help no matter where you go. Big or small, populated or lonely…we all need help from time to time… and the further in to space you live, the more help you typically need.”

“So why help me?” Sabine gave her an distrusting look.

“Well,” she smiled. “You seem like a nice enough girl, trying to start her life over. I’ve seen a lot of people like you on my travels. I make it my mission to help people heal—and that doesn’t have to limit to only medicine.”

“You mean,  _that’s it?_ ”

“That’s it,” she nodded. “Afraid you’re stuck with me until we reach Bakura. I refueled on Corphelion, so we won’t be making any stops. I’m also not going to babysit you once we’re there, understood? I have important work to do with the Kurtzen, and you are free to tag along for the ride, but you will find your own path as soon as we land.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Sabine smiled.

The woman was polite enough, but a small fire hid beneath her eyes. In a way, Sabine respected that.

“Now…” She sighed and leaned over to offer a hand. “You know who I am, so what’s your name? You and I will be stuck on this ship for a while, we might as well swap stories while we’re here.”

“Sabine Wren,” she shook her hand lightly. “I’m afraid my stories a pretty long one, doc.”

“Good!” Doctor Thorp perked up and prepped the jump to lightspeed. “We have plenty of time. This will be fun! It’s been a while since I had a travelling companion. This ship is nearly impossible to operate without a co-pilot. Hit that button, will you?”

Sabine did as she was told and the Corellian Freighter shot away into the stars.

Bakura was about as far away from Mandalore as a person could get without being sucked into a black hole. Perhaps Sabine’s fresh start waited for her on that remote planet? Maybe it could be with this doctor on this old Corellian Freighter?

Between Thorp and that Onderon senator, she had met only a handful of kind people in all her years of travel. Most of the faces saw her as a traitor, others a bounty, and the rest saw a young girl that they wanted to manipulate. Then there was the teal-eyed man and his crew. There was something about those guys… they were annoying, but they never tried to attack her.

Maybe,  _and it was a big maybe, but_  Sabine wondered if they might be genuinely serious about wanting her to go with them as a part of the crew? Then again, it might just be a trap to get her bounty or to turn her in to the Academy.

Sabine knew better than to trust anyone,  _especially a kind stranger._  Eventually, everyone will betray you to save their own skin—that’s what Sabine saw— _that’s what she believed_. She knew better than to think she could ever belong anywhere, except for on her own.

Even now, with Doctor Thorp, Sabine appreciated the moment to catch her breath, but nobody was kind for no reason. It was another slip of weakness, just like Ketsu once said. She thought too much about the good in people where there was none left in the galaxy. People didn’t help others for no reason, they just didn’t do that. Doctor Thorp was doing this job on Bakura for work and funds, and the meddling crew was on her trail for the bounty with the truant officer on Mandalore. Sabine refused to prove Ketsu right, she wasn’t going to trust anyone, but she would play along for as long as it benefited her travels.

After being betrayed by the one person you counted on most in the galaxy, how could she expect anything less of herself, _or of others?_

* * *

 

Upon landing, Sabine helped Doctor Thorp unload some of her medical supplies on the planet Bakura, somewhere within the continent called  _Braad._  

The planet was very different from anything she’d ever seen. They were always taken to populated areas in the Academy, full of buildings, of lifeforms, and noise—even when it was just her and Ketsu, they always stuck towards a lot of faces to hide behind and steal from.

Braad was nothing like those places. It was so primitive, quiet, and empty. The Kurtzen people didn’t have skyscrapers, they didn’t build a lot of housing and buildings. It was just a handful of natives, living in a handful of houses. The biggest building within site seemed to be this research facility set up for Doctor Thorp, and even it wasn’t nearly as large as her transport ship.

“Greetings Doctor, thank you for coming to our planet!” A Kurtzen citizen said. “We have high hopes that your medicine can aid us just as it has done in the past.”

“Healer Arrizza,” Thorp greeted, “Glad to see you in such good health.”

Sabine had never seen an alien like the Kurtzen before. They didn’t seem like the species to travel much due to their poor health and low numbers. They were fairly human-looking, with white skin and flat noses. The most notable trait was the many lumps on their heads that covered the entire cranium from above the eyes to the back of their necks.

A few of the natives in the corner were whispering something with frowns and glares towards Sabine and the doctor.

“Don’t mind the elders,” the speaker said. “They disapprove of all this advanced technology.”

“Would they rather you go back to swallowing totem strings to heal your wounded?” the doctor laughed.

At that Arrizza argued something further about these totems that were held so highly by his people, but soon after, both he and the doctor went on to discussing more medical-related things as the sound of a ship broke through the quiet atmosphere.

“Ah, you brought more company?” He held his hands out wide as though to welcome the ship to his planet.

The doctor frowned. “Actually—I didn’t bring anyone else with me,  _just my stowaway, here._ ”

Sabine groaned and rolled her eyes. It must have been her stalkers yet again. To believe they would come this far out for something so simple as a bounty. It couldn’t have been worth the trouble for as small of the amount they were asking for her head.

She turned and saw the ship landing, but frowned in an instant when the ship was not the one she remembered tagging the day before. No… this was a pursuer-class enforcement ship, manufactured only on Mandalore. It was employed to the police, but more importantly, it was the ship piloted by the truant officer of the Mandalorian Academy. She would recognize it anywhere.  

“He found me!”

“Who found you?” Thorp asked suddenly.

“I’m sorry,” she spoke softly, but Sabine didn’t stick around to answer the question, she simply took off as fast as she could run.

This wasn’t good. There was nowhere to hide, no one to blend into. She stuck out on this barren planet like a sore thumb. 

 _Oh this was hopeless._ She thought frantically. But then she stopped and pondered on it for a moment. _Hopeless was how she worked best._

She grabbed at her satchel and pulled out what few remaining trump cards she had. Three bombs, D-grade, and about half ammo in each blaster.  _It wasn’t a lot, but it was something to work with._

“This is your last chance, Sabine,” she grumbled to herself. “Don’t waste it.”

The truant officer appeared, his presence just as intimidating as she remembered. His armor was standard issue for Mandalorians at the Academy, but it was completely drowned in black, a lone green symbol of Mandalore painted across the chest piece.

He raised his blaster, took aim, and ignored the screams of the Kurtzen people as he fired one warning shot at Sabine Wren.

She dodged it and fired back at him as fast as she could pull the trigger. Already, she aimed for the air because the thunderous sound of his jetpack alerted her that he was past the point of warnings after what she and Ketsu did to him on their last run in.

He wasn’t concerned with the Kurtzen, not even in the slightest. As to be expected from a truant officer of Mandalore.  _Good,_ Sabine thought once. This wasn’t their problem, she didn’t really need for any of them to get hurt. 

Luckily, a small grove of trees could provide her cover, but not much. She wandered inside and placed her bombs just as the officer’s noises drew nearer.

“Where is your partner?” He asked, his voice hoarse and penetrating as ever. It was like a flood, loud, rumbling, and made you afraid to be anywhere near it.

“Like I know!” Sabine snarked back, “Don’t you have papers to grade and children to kidnap!?”

He landed with a rumble and continued firing. “Your mind has been polluted young one. A pity,” he said, “Your instructors always held you in such high regard.”

“My instructors killed my family!” she waited for him to pass by. “You and your precious Empire!”

She let one of the bombs off, and it toppled the sickly tree onto the Mandalorian as he blocked it with his arm and shoved it back the other way.

“Like your tainted armor, you and your escapee friend, Miss Onyo, will both face justice, and be cleansed for your traitorous actions.”  

“Hey, if you find her, be my guest!” She snickered.

_Two bombs, 25% ammo…Okay Sabine, get creative._

She climbed higher and scaled the trees, using her small size and light movements to her advantage. The officer may have had the heaviest armor on Mandalore, and it was equipped with plenty of weaponry, but he could not be silent if he tried,  _not on Bakura at least._

“Come out and die with dignity like a Mandalorian!” he called.

She tossed one bomb off and pounced to the ground before he could fire a shot at her position. Sabine then set the bomb off, damaging his jetpack enough that he was forced to release it and let the newly made flames burn out as the pack twisted and flipped around on the ground like a dying fish.

While he was distracted, she also managed to get five good shots all the way up his armor, but even though it scratched the paint where she’d hit, his suit was too thick for any of her bullets to even make an impact hard enough to bruise. It was enough to sting though.

_One bomb. 10% ammo._

Sabine picked herself off the ground and continued running, but the thundering sounds of the officer’s steps trailed closely behind her. One shot, then two, he fired at her until a barrage of fire, aimed above, snapped the branches apart and they fell to block her path.

She jumped to scale the wreckage, but his shots narrowly missed her feet. He was too close to run from at this point, so she bent her knees and flipped backwards from the branches as she let her last bomb fall and attach itself to the officer’s armor, exploding in a satisfying blend of smoke and fire as Sabine landed and fell backwards on a broken branch.

She watched the dust clear in hopes that she had done it, only to see him wave the smoke away and turn to face her as she lay in the dirt. Sabine growled, firing the last of her blaster fire until the empty cartridge clicked, a sour sound that made her heart sink.

_Zero bombs, no more ammo._

_Well,_ she thought,  _At least I had a pretty good run?_

She could only watch as he aimed his rifle down at her, his voice even more annoyed than before… “No more games,” he said. “Any last words.”

Her heart beat quickly, mind racing, and eyes searching for a way out, but when she saw none, she no longer felt afraid. Sabine embraced that this was her end, and she did so with a smile.

“Yeah,” she lifted her helmet enough to spit and then said, “You can take your fancy blaster and go shove it up your—”

“Language!”

Sabine’s eyes shot wide, the feeling returning to her body as soon as she heard that voice—that annoying, bossy, amazing voice of the man with the ponytail.

A roar emerged, connecting to the Lasat who beat the truant officer back with what looked like some sort of electric bo-staff. With his size and strength, the Mandalorian took to the air with that one hit, and landed on his back in the middle of the broken tree limbs.

“All this for skipping a few measly classes!?” He exclaimed.

“Focus on the task at hand, buddy!” the man pointed, “This isn’t over!”

“What are you two doing here!?” Sabine shouted.

“Well—” the man’s voice stretched as he lifted her to her feet. “You still haven’t let me finish giving my pitch.”

_“What?”_

He was about to reply before the flying tree trunk caught his attention and he opened fire towards the truant officer.

“ _Spectre One_  to  _Ghost_ , we could use a pick up right about now!” he grumbled.

The astromech’s beeps replied to him, saying that they were on their way.  _Who was “they”?_

“What’s your plan?” Sabine wondered.

“This is pretty much it,” he said. “We didn’t expect this guy to follow your signal.”

“Is that what you two did?”

He rubbed his neck with a shrug… “Kind of?”

The Lasat hollered once as he got sent backwards by the officer. Even though it would appear that he had fresh bandages on his arm, he had held his own against the Mandalorian pretty well up until this point in the fight. It was admirable.

The man glared and searched around the trees as he escorted Sabine back a few slow and steady steps.

_What was he thinking?_

“Hey! Tall, dark, and ugly!” he shouted suddenly, his small pistol drawn, though he didn’t hold the trigger and let his fingers hover above the barrel. “Why don’t you pick on somebody your own size?”

_This guy was insane!_

He gave a nod to his friend, but then held Sabine back as he let one single shot fire into the trees, completely missing everything.

“What was that!?” She exclaimed.

He only smiled wide and stared into the clouds. 

“A signal.”

“A sig—” Sabine’s voice was cut off as soon as their ship’s cannons fired into the trees, the vessel whooshing overhead and back again with a ferocity and grace that Sabine couldn’t even begin to fathom came from that little orange droid that she blew up back on Corphelion.

The Lasat jumped out of the way as the branches fell from the sky in a fury, trapping the truant officer beneath their might.  _Not even he could have dodged that much debris._

“Come on,” the ponytail man motioned. “Let’s get back to town and help the locals clean up.

“Clean up what?” Sabine wondered.

##  **KA-BOOM!**

“That guy’s ship,” the Lasat laughed.

“Was that necessary?” Sabine scoffed.

“Kind of?” The man nodded. “No ship, no tracker, and no back-up, means a safe planet, and means spare parts for us.”

“Come on! Let’s get to work,” the Lasat shoved. “You owe us that much for saving your life!”

“I was just fine!” she protested.

_“Yeah right…”_

Sabine watched them leave, and looked back to the large pile of broken trees behind her. Nothing but silence yet again. Feeling obligated, Sabine followed the men out of what was left of the fragile forest and back to Braad to check on the Doctor and the Kurtzen— _she owed them at least that much, right?_

* * *

 

“Glad you’re safe,” Doctor Thorp said to Sabine.

“Us too,” the man said. “We wont cause you any further delay Doctor. We’ll be taking the wreckage with us and leave you to your work.”

“And sorry about the mess,” the Lasat bowed. “We hope the best for you and your people.”

“Thank you,” the Kurtzen bowed back.

“So, my young stowaway—” Thorp grinned and started to head towards her research base with one final question. “What will you do now?”

Sabine thought about it as the man and the Lasat headed back towards their ship which had just landed in the open field outside of town. 

She grumbled after a moment and followed behind them against everything she thought she should do. 

Sabine needed answers, and as soon as they were on the empty out-skirted plains where their freighter was parked, she stopped as the ship’s landing platform fell open, but she didn’t pay it any attention and instead shouted at her two rescuers, demanding they answer her questions.

“You two!” she bellowed, her blaster raised… _It was empty, but they didn’t need to know that._  “Alright! Fess up! You mean to tell me that you followed me all the way out here, fought a high-ranking Mandalorian officer, and  _blew up his whole ship_ just for a simple bounty on me? What game are you playing at!?”

 _“Wha—”_  They started to say before the sultry tone of command from some woman erupted from behind the two boys and they stepped out of her way.

“We aren’t here for a bounty,” she stated, brushing past the boys with the orange astromech rolling behind her feet. 

The green Twi’lek woman approached Sabine with a resolve of steel and a look of fire in her eyes that made the Mandalorian lower her weapon slightly.

 _The pilot from earlier was starting to make a lot more sense._ Sabine thought.  _This woman must be their ringleader?_

“And who are you supposed to be?” Sabine scoffed, “Spectre Zero?”

Hera smiled, a brow raised as she shook her head.

“They call me Spectre Two, actually—but you can call me Hera Syndulla.” She pointed and replied, “This is Chopper, and the two behind me are Garazeb Orrelios and Kanan Jarrus. They mean well, but they aren’t very good at getting a point across, are they?”

The boys sunk a little as she gave them a look over her shoulder, and Sabine watched carefully as this confidant Twi’lek woman, Hera, turned her green gaze back towards her.

“Can I ask your name now?” Hera added as she made her approach. Her voice was soft, curious, and the complete opposite of the truant officer whose tone was laced in fear, or the Kanan guy’s that made her want to punch him in the jaw.

In fact, her voice lacked any accent at all to affiliate her with the other Twi’leks that Sabine had seen in the galaxy, prompting her to believe that this woman was very educated, and had been around high class leader-types whom she had trained her voice to command respect out of. Only vigorous training and a sound resolve could give a person such an aura of certainty and the vocals to match.

“Wren. Sabine Wren,” She said. “So what do you three want?”

Chopper grumbled.

“Fine, four!” She corrected. “You got my attention, but you should know that I get bored pretty quickly…So I’d start talking…”

 _She understood binary,_ Hera thought with a grin.  _That was impressive in its own right. What else did this young girl know?_

“I am the captain of this ship that you so eagerly vandalized back on Corphelion,” Hera said with a frown and the tone to match, “and I want—”

 _Here it comes,_ Sabine thought…  _She’s going to demand credits, or make a big scene out of this. But they were hunting her—so any and all damage was completely justified!_

“—I want to offer you a place on-board,” she finished.

_“What?”_

“It’s not a very fun position,” she smiled. “it doesn’t pay very much aside from provisions and shelter—and I can guarantee that you will be put into more dangerous situations than you’d ever be otherwise—“

“I thought Hera was supposed to be the smart-talker out of the two of you?” Zeb mumbled.

“Hush!” Kanan whispered. “Let her make her point.”

“But—” Hera continued. “We would really like to have you, and the Rebellion would benefit with your unique area of expertise. We’ve seen what you can do, and I think this position would suite your style. We can help each other to help others.”

“You’re with the Rebellion?” She lowered her weapon.

“We are a small part in a larger Rebellion I like to think,” she replied. “We keep to ourselves, but we stick it to the Empire whenever we can and we profit off of them before they can hurt other innocent lives.”

“So what? You’re some sort of half-rebels that just go around helping people and recruiting strangers, is that it?”

“We help people,” Kanan smiled, “But we also get paid to cause trouble for the Imperials.”

“And we recruit assets if we think they can help our cause— _or if we can help theirs._ ”

“I can vouch for that,” Zeb raised a hand. “I’ve only known these two for a few weeks and already I’ve seen more action than I ever thought I’d see again. Feels pretty good to be back in the fight again. Feels good to have a reason to fight.”

Hera let her hands fall to the girl’s shoulders. Sabine jumped because she hadn’t realized that the woman had snuck so close. She was as silent as she was imperious.

“Now Sabine, I can’t ask you to join us in any other way than what I’ve already said…” she stated. “And if you turn down this offer then  _I give you my word_  that you will never see us bothering you again… but if you think that this sounds  _even remotely_  like something you’d want, then come with us. Fight with us for a greater cause.” 

“I’ll bet that you could have a lot of fun fighting for a purpose instead of just fighting for yourself for a change, right kid?” Kanan smirked.

“And that’s it?” she asked.

“That’s it,” Hera said with a shake of her head and a smile. She backed away with only those words and fell back towards her small band of half-rebels.

“Think about it kid,” Kanan shrugged. “We’re not much, but we have a nice thing going for us.”

“You wouldn’t be alone anymore,” Zeb smirked, “And you get to do some good in the galaxy by sticking it to the Imps.”

“So… what do you think?” Hera asked.

“I think you’re all crazy!” She laughed. “Crazy to think that you can take on the Empire alone and crazy to trust me as a member of your little crew after all that I did to get you off my back.”

“We do trust you,” Kanan said, “Even if you don’t really trust us yet.”

“They’re persistent that way,” Zeb teased. “They learn to grow on you.”

“What about when you get chased?” She yelled. “I’m still wanted for going awol, and I’ve made plenty of enemies that would track you down.”

“Heh… Join the club!” Zeb chuckled.

“We have a cloaking device—never reads as the same ship twice. No one will be able to track us down, or follow us—” Hera gave a thought or two to herself afterwards and hummed, “Well, almost.”

Sabine was skeptical.

Hera turned back towards the ship and motioned for the boys to follow her. “Did I mention that you’ll have your own room—free to decorate as you like?”

Sabine removed her helmet and watched as the four of them climbed the railing.

This was the first time any of them had actually seen her face. She was as young as they thought, her hair black, olive skin, and her eyes two ovals of brown. Not the features seen on a typical Mandalorian, but perhaps one more suited to the moon of Concordia.

“Hey kid,” Kanan hollered back. “How old are you anyway?”

“I’m thirteen!” She pouted. “Don’t call me kid, old man!”

Hera and Zeb laughed all the way back to the ship’s control room as Kanan’s ego tried to recover from her remark.

“Well,” he finally said with a stern look and a grin. “You care to join us for dinner while you mull over our offer? I would if I were you. I am a pretty decent cook.”

Zeb scoffed from across the ship, but Kanan ignored it.

Her stomach growled loudly at the simple thought of food. She couldn’t even hide it from him at this point, and blushed as she started to march on-board.

“Fine,” she spat. “But, I haven’t agreed to anything yet!”

He held his hands up defensively as she shoved past him. 

“Wouldn’t think anything less,” he grinned.

“Oh and Sabine!” Hera’s voice appeared above them as Kanan began to climb the tall ladder that lead to the living quarters on the ship. “Once you get done with dinner, you and Kanan are going to buff out the dents you made of my ship the other day, as well as work on the repairs to the  _Phantom_ which you caused earlier this week.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Kanan waved. “And the graffiti.”

“Actually,” Hera hummed. “Leave it, it’s growing on me. But the dents—yeah, not so much. I want it fixed.”

She walked away so casually that Sabine almost didn’t process her compliment. Did she just say that she liked her work? That was the first time anyone ever said they liked her art. Sabine was about to give in to the compliment but she shook away her almost smile and regained her snarky attitude.

“I haven’t agreed to anything yet!” She shouted back. “Don’t hold your breath on those repairs, lady!”

“Uh huh,” Hera was not swayed, in fact, she saw the lie slipping right through the happy gleam in her brown eyes. She was actually happy, even if she didn’t want to show it. The fact made Hera smile. “Your room is the first door on the left if you wanted to get settled in. Let us know if you need anything.”

Chopper ranted down at her about how much trouble she caused them, but also how he was conflicted in having a mechanic of her caliber to work beside. He said something about testing her skills for himself, and Sabine felt a rush of some strange feeling as a simple droid expressed so much attitude and challenge towards her. Not to mention the Twi’lek’s orderly disposition and command.

 _Was this what being happy felt like?_ She wondered. Sabine hadn’t felt happy in so long, she wasn’t sure she remembered if this was it or not.

The Twi’lek, Hera, reminded her a lot of her mother, and the droid was sort of like a much grumpier version of herself. The one called Kanan and the Lasat named Zeb had actually proven to be pretty decent fighters and friendly at that. Their welcoming attitudes seemed to be more sincere now that the captain explained what they were trying to say to her all this time. 

“Are those two always like that?” She asked Kanan.

“You get used to it,” he said, turning towards the mess hall. “I’ll call when dinner’s ready.”

##  _*WHOOSH!*_

Sabine kept her smile to herself as the hatch doors shut behind them, sealing her into the ship, completely trapped inside. For once in her life she wasn’t really eager to leave somewhere. In fact, she wasn’t too sure they would keep their promise and leave her alone, even if she did leave?

Blowing up some Imperials, having a place to sleep at night—people who trusted her. It sounded almost too good to be true. There was a warmth coming from this ship, and she actually—maybe for just a few minutes—admitted that it might not be all that bad of a place to spend her time.

She opened the door to her large empty room and immediately saw all the spaces that she could decorate.

Zeb nudged her, making her nearly plunge a full foot into the new room. It was a soft shove, but Sabine wondered what a being like him at full strength would be able to do if he got mad enough. _She saw what he did to the truant officer, and that was while wounded!_

“That was for the arm!” He laughed. “Welcome to the crew, kid.”

“I never agreed to that!” She blew the stray hair out of her face and sneered at him until he walked away.

“Yeah, yeah…We’ll see if you feel that way after dinner,” he grinned. “If you can stomach Kanan’s cooking long enough to commit to an answer.”

“I heard that, Zeb!”

His ears flattened, but he still smiled as he went to where Hera was piloting the ship. The two and the droid were all talking about some story that Sabine didn’t understand, while Kanan was making a racket in the mess hall part of the ship. This model of freighter didn’t have a very big kitchen, so Sabine figured their meals were limited to ration packs, frozen foods, and maybe soup. Honestly, any of those sounded better than the empty meals she’d had lately. In fact, the ship was already starting to smell like cooking and it made her mouth water.

She shut her door and placed her helmet on the small table beside the door.

_Interesting crew, worthwhile gig, complete artistic freedom, warm bed, a hot meal, AND they gave her their trust…just like that!_

She forgot about the Academy in that moment. She forgot about Ketsu, about the truant officer, and she forgot about running away for once in _—she couldn’t even remember when._

This little, dysfunctional ship, these strange but welcoming rebels, and getting paid to fight the Empire—this might just be where Sabine could belong after all.

“Alright,” she admitted, finally allowing the smile to show. “I think I could get used to this whole crew-thing?”


End file.
